Harvey Kuenn
Harvey Edward Kuenn (December 4, 1930 – February 28, 1988) was an American player, coach, and manager in Major League Baseball. As a shortstop and outfielder, he played with the Detroit Tigers (1952–59), Cleveland Indians (1960), San Francisco Giants (1961–65), Chicago Cubs (1965–66), and Philadelphia Phillies (1966). He batted and threw right-handed. After retiring, Kuenn managed the Milwaukee Brewers (1975, 1982–83). Early life and career Kuenn ( ) was born in West Allis, Wisconsin, but raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and attended Lutheran High School. He once kicked a 53-yard field goal for Lutheran in a football game, which is tied for the eighth-longest field goal in Wisconsin high school football history. He played collegiate baseball at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he was a member of Delta Upsilon Fraternity. Signed by Detroit as an amateur free agent in , Kuenn was named the starting shortstop after joining the team late in the season. In his first full season in , he hit .308 with 94 runs and led the major leagues with 209 hits, setting a major league rookie record with 167 singles. He received the American League Rookie of the Year and ''TSN'' Rookie of the Year awards. Also in that season, he received the first of his ten consecutive selections to the All-Star Game. A line drive hitter who hit to all fields, Kuenn showed consistency in the next two seasons, compiling almost identical numbers: .306 with 81 runs and 201 hits in ; .306 with 101 runs and 190 hits in . He raised his average to .332 in 1956, surpassed only by Mickey Mantle (.353) and Ted Williams (.345) in the batting race. A year later, he slumped badly to .277. But he rebounded in 1958 with .319, ending third in the league behind Williams (.328) and Pete Runnels (.322), and surpassing Al Kaline, Vic Power, Bob Cerv, Mantle, Rocky Colavito, Minnie Miñoso and Nellie Fox. In that season, he switched to the outfield, where he played all three positions over the remainder of his career. Later playing career After winning the American League batting crown in with a .353 average, Kuenn was traded to Cleveland for Rocky Colavito, who had won the home run title with 42 homers (the trade that is often referred to by Cleveland fans as "the curse of Rocky Colavito"). With the Indians, Kuenn hit .308 in the season. He finished his career in the National League playing for the Giants, Cubs and Phillies, retiring at the end of the 1966 season. In a 15-season playing career, Kuenn was a .303 hitter with 87 home runs and 671 RBI in 1833 games. He led the AL in hits and doubles four times each, and finished with 2,092 hits. Kuenn had the dubious distinction of making the final out in two of Sandy Koufax's four no-hitters—in and . In the former, the final out was on a ground ball back to Koufax.http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1963/B05110LAN1963.htm In the latter, he struck out for the final out in Koufax's perfect game, the last no-hitter pitched against the Chicago Cubs to date.http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1965/B09090LAN1965.htm Kuenn was activated by the Brewers for the last two weeks of 1971, in order for him to qualify for a pension. He never appeared in a game, however. Milwaukee Brewers career Kuenn became a Milwaukee Brewers coach in and served as an interim manager in . He suffered a series of medical complications beginning in the mid-1970s, including heart and stomach surgeries, and in February 1980, he had his right leg amputated just below the knee after a blood clot cut circulation. He returned to coaching only six months after the operation. In , Kuenn managed the Milwaukee Brewers to their only World Series appearance to date after taking over the team in mid-season. He was selected by the Associated Press as the AL Manager of the Year, after taking the Brewers in June from a 23-24 start to the AL East title with a 95-67 record. Milwaukee then won the AL pennant after rallying from a 2-0 deficit and beating the California Angels in the best-of-five American League Championship Series. They ultimately lost the 1982 World Series to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games. Kuenn was fired as manager after the Brewers finished fifth in the AL East with an otherwise respectable 87-75 record in . He compiled a 160-118 managerial record. During his tenure, the hard-hitting Brewers were known as Harvey's Wallbangers. At the time, their roster included Cecil Cooper, Ben Oglivie, Ted Simmons, Gorman Thomas, and future Hall of Famers Paul Molitor and Robin Yount. After being replaced, he worked as a major league scouting consultant for the Brewers. Death Kuenn died at his home in Peoria, Arizona, in 1988. The Brewers wore a patch with his initials during the 1988 season to commemorate him. That same year, he was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame. In 2002, his name was added to the Brewers' honorarium with a plaque in the concourse circling Miller Park. See also *Magazine covers * List of major league players with 2,000 hits * List of Major League Baseball batting champions * List of Major League Baseball doubles champions * Major League Baseball titles leaders References External links * Baseball-Reference.com - career playing statistics * Baseball-Reference.com - career managerial record *Baseball Almanac Category:Major League Baseball shortstops Category:Major League Baseball outfielders Category:American people of German descent Category:Chicago Cubs players Category:Cleveland Indians players Category:Detroit Tigers players Category:Philadelphia Phillies players Category:San Francisco Giants players Category:American League All-Stars Category:American people with disabilities Category:Baseball players from Wisconsin Category:American League batting champions Category:Major League Baseball first base coaches Category:Major League Baseball hitting coaches Category:Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award winners Category:Major League Baseball managers Category:Milwaukee Brewers coaches Category:Milwaukee Brewers managers Category:Wisconsin Badgers baseball players Category:American Lutherans Category:People from West Allis, Wisconsin Category:1930 births Category:1988 deaths Category:People from Peoria, Arizona Category:Sportspeople from Milwaukee, Wisconsin Category:Shortstops Category:Outfielders Category:Coaches Category:Managers Category:Players